Isabelle Nakaima

PhD candidate in Biological Sciences at São Paulo State University (UNESP). Currently, under the supervision of Dr. Rodrigo Domingues at the Laboratory of Marine Genomics and Ecology (LAGEM UNESP CLP), she develops research using environmental DNA (eDNA) techniques and citizen science as tools to collect data on ichthyofauna and elasmobranchs in marine protected areas of the state of São Paulo. Recently, she served as a guest researcher at INVEMAR Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras, in Santa Marta, Colombia, through the IOC-UNESCO early career training program. This experience deepened her international engagement and allowed her to contribute to marine genetics projects, as well as initiatives related to stakeholder training, planning, and management for the conservation and sustainable use of marine environments.She holds a degree in Oceanography from the Oceanographic Institute of the University of São Paulo (IOUSP) and a masters degree in Biological Oceanography from the same institution, where she developed research in marine landscape genomics using techniques such as RNAseq and ddRADseq. During her masters, she conducted transcriptomic and genomic analyses of the shortfin mako shark (Isurus oxyrinchus), investigating how oceanographic factors influence gene flow disruption among individuals from the North Atlantic, South Atlantic, and Indian Oceans. This research aimed to expand the molecular and ecological understanding of the species to support its conservation and management.She also has experience in the socio-environmental field, having served as deputy secretary of the Executive Secretariat of GAM-SE, within the framework of the UN Decade of Ocean Science. She organized the XVI Oceanography Theme Week and completed her undergraduate thesis analyzing the application of citizen science in marine litter management as a tool for critical and pragmatic environmental education, under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Alexander Turra.She is certified as an Advanced and Nitrox diver by IANTD, with a specialization in shark conservation (AWARE Shark Conservation Diver) by PADI. Recognized for her professional ethics, multitasking abilities, organizational skills, and teamwork, she seeks to bridge science and society for the conservation and management of marine environments. (Source: Lattes Curriculum)